Aaron Rodgers has surprised many NFL fans by dragging his free agency out for more than a month and counting, and the star quarterback provided some insight on Thursday about why he has taken so long to reach a decision about his future.
Rodgers answered some questions about his situation during a Thursday appearance on “The Pat McAfee Show.” When asked about the narratives that he is holding teams up or waiting for a better offer to come along, Rodgers provided a much different explanation.
Rodgers said there are issues in his personal life that have required his attention.
“I’m in a different phase of my life. I’m 41 years old. I’m in a serious relationship. I have off-the-field stuff going on that requires my attention,” Rodgers told McAfee. “I have personal commitments I made, not knowing what my future was going to look like after last year, that are important to me. And I have a couple people in my inner, inner circle who are really battling some difficult stuff.
“So, I have a lot of things that are taking my attention — and have, beginning in really January — away from football. That’s been where I’ve been focusing most of my attention on.”
One theory from a prominent reporter was that Rodgers’ agent advised the former NFL MVP to drag his feet in order to create leverage. Rodgers said he has been “up front” in conversations with teams and not made any specific financial demands. He said he would even be willing to play for $10 million, which is well below market value for a starting quarterback.
Rodgers did not go into detail about the issues he is dealing with in his personal life. The quarterback very subtly revealed back in December that he has a new girlfriend, though very little is known about the woman.
It is unclear if any team other than the Pittsburgh Steelers has interest in Rodgers at this point. He may only have one other realistic option if he does not want to play for Mike Tomlin’s team.
